Readiness to Change in Penitentiary Employees in Legal and Professional Terms

Abstract

The transformations of the modern world impose the changes on an individual. The readiness to implement them is, in turn, the prerequisite for his further social and professional development. The changing process and its course of events is conditional upon various factors. Prison Service officers are susceptible to stress and professional burnout due to the nature and specificity of their work, which consequently discourages them from introducing changes and in this way their development is thwarted. The objective of the authors’ own research consisted in establishing the level at which penitentiary workers are ready to change. The studies were conducted on a group of 70 officers of the Prison Service, half of whom were prison security officers and penitentiary educators. As part of the research, the Change Readiness Questionnaire by R. Kriegel and D. Brandt, in the Polish adaptation by E. Brzezińska and A. Paszkowska-Rogacz, was used. It can be inferred from the gathered data that prison security officers have more strength in comparison with penitentiary educators. The studies have also confirmed that the individuals with lower age and work experience are to a larger extent ready for changes and display greater resourcefulness and passion for work. The findings divulge the necessity to carry out diverse supportive activities, particularly in the groups of older officers.